->''"No, really! That was an awesome attack! I could have been killed."''->''*{{beat}}*''->''"Well, maybe I am exaggerating a little bit. I could have at least gotten a bruise or maybe a small scratch..."''-->--'''Vegetto''', ''Manga/DragonBall''

So you have a setup for an epic action show, but you've raised the stakes so high that even one loss will be devastating. Maybe EvilOnlyHasToWinOnce. You could try to fake it with an apparent loss in the middle of the episode, multi-part series or perhaps a bittersweet victory when a character has a HeroicSacrifice, but otherwise you can't have a genuine loss.

This would likely mean an InvincibleHero if any suspense was played up, so the show doesn't play up the suspense. With this trope, whether the heroes win or lose is not the point. How they win is the point because any other result would be the end. Of course, beware the metaphorical GodModeSue line.

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]* ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamAGE'', despite being real robot, plays with the magically self-evolving AGE system, which always upgrade with new gimmicks regularly just to let the heroes become ''showy'' and ''[[CurbStompBattle overly]] [[SecondHourSuperpower powered]]''. AGE-2 Double Bullet comes into mind here. * ''Anime/{{Akagi}}'' fits. Due to the way it's narrated and the fact that it's a {{prequel}} to another story, Anime/{{Ten}}, where Akagi already is a legend, you are ''supposed'' to know that Akagi always wins. The story is about ''how'' he became a legend. And looking badass while doing it.* ''Manga/{{Golgo 13}}'' wouldn't have a career (and we wouldn't have a series) if he ever failed. The series has gone on for as long as it has on equal parts this trope and his steady recession from the spotlight (his stories are now largely about the people hiring him).* Both subverted in the absolute cruelest and most heart-rending way possible and later played straight in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. [[spoiler:Kamina appears to be going this route in classic {{Super Robot|Genre}} fashion, but he's killed ruthlessly in episode 8 after letting his guard down. After the TimeSkip (specifically in Part IV), however, Simon plays it straight, never getting so much as a scratch on him.]]** This starts long before the timeskip; basically as soon as Simon [[spoiler: gets over Kamina's death]] nobody save the (Anti) Spiral King and Lordgenome could touch him.** It's also subverted in the finale; even after the crew combines into a mech the size of a galaxy, or in the compilation movie, an entire universe, the Anti-Spiral is able to match them strength for strength, because they're in a pocket universe that the Anti-Spiral controls. It's Simon himself that proves indestructible.* ''Manga/SpaceAdventureCobra'': Cobra is a lot like this. You don't ever doubt he'll handily win and hand the bad guys their rear. The only question is : "how will he do it, and how cool will it look?"* Mamoru Takamura of ''Manga/HajimeNoIppo'' is an example in all of his unimportant matches. He usually steamroll KO's his opponents in the first round, sometimes it's just shown in a stillstanding picture. In one of his matches (the one before his World Match), this trope is even used by Takamura [[GenreSavvy on purpose]], as he ''wanted'' to come off absolutely invincible to the audience, which is why he only used his weak hand to defeat his opponent. All of his serious matches don't fit this trope, however.* Alucard of ''Manga/{{Hellsing}}'' is a GodModeSue, but nobody cares because it's just so entertaining to watch him [[MookHorrorShow massacre the bad guys]]. Alucard's invincibility is parodied (naturally) in ''WebVideo/HellsingUltimateAbridged'', where he's well aware of his invincibility and points it out as a reminder that he can do whatever the hell he wants to. Which also applies to [[{{Badass}} R]][[NighInvulnerability a]][[MemeticSexGod i]] from ''Webcomic/{{Noblesse}}''.* Takuto of ''Anime/StarDriver'', as of writing, has not lost a single fight, but that's okay, because he wins each one in a different way. A different ''awesome'' way. [[spoiler:And the villains have even started incorporating his inevitable {{curbstomp|Battle}}s into their plans]]… After getting his MidSeasonUpgrade, the battles become much more samey.* Dante from the ''[[Anime/DevilMayCryTheAnimatedSeries Devil May Cry]]'' anime is SUPPOSED TO BE THIS since he pretty much waltzes through every fight in the series. Somewhat justified as the series is supposed to focus on Dante's day-to-day jobs so he never goes up against any major threats. However, many people found it more to be an example of a Boring InvincibleHero. The supposed major threat he goes up against in the last episodes is [[spoiler: quickly disposed of once he gets serious.]]* ''Manga/HareluyaIIBoy'': You never wonder whether or not Hibino is going to succeed or not. You only wonder to what degree of funny and awesome his successes will be.* ''Anime/{{Grenadier}}'': Rushuna Tendo always wins, but DAMN if she doesn't [[MsFanservice look hot while doing so.]]* ''Manga/DragonBall'': ** Vegetto, Vegetto, Vegetto! He might just be the king of this trope. He effortlessly dominates Buu even when turned into a piece of candy, and mocks him the entire time. It does help that Buu had been quite an InvincibleVillain until that point, making someone beating him up even more satisfying.** Goku for most of the Red Ribbon Army Sage. Outside of a couple of close calls, Goku dominated every foe he came across. It wasn't a question if Goku was going to win, but how much humiliation he was going to heap upon his opponent before he kicked them to the curve. * Dark Schneider from ''Manga/{{Bastard}}'' is this most of the time.* ''Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren'' makes it clear that Tifa, Yuffie, and the rest are at the peak of human ability, but Kadaj, Loz, and Yazoo are superhuman. Meanwhile, it takes all three of them working together to challenge Cloud. The three of them or one [[spoiler:Sephiroth. Or Bahamut.]]* ''Manga/ThePrinceOfTennis'': Ryoma already starts the series as a skilled tennis player, but his evolution in strategies and DefeatingTheUndefeatable makes it worth watching.* Kenshiro of ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'' is possibly the archetypical shonen example. There's never any question that he'll win, or even that his opponent will put up a fight; it's all about the catharsis.* Sebastian from the anime version ''Manga/BlackButler'' can do absolutely anything that Ciel orders him to but he tends to do considerably more than is actually necessary. When ordered to win a ice sculpting contest he buildings Noah's ark and designs it so that the top will split open to reveal another statue inside of it that consists of dozens of animals. Then when ordered to retrieve a stolen diamond he defeats the thieves while winning an ice skating contest that wasn't even happening and ends it by sailing through the broken on the statue of Noah's ark he made earlier.* ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'': Judai Yuki almost always wins, but his variety of Fusion Monsters(and the few occasions where he works around it) make a rather entertaining show.* Anime/GaoGaiGar, at least [[spoiler: until the Primevals arrive.]]* ''Manga/{{Jormungand}}'': Koko's BadassCrew usually demolish their foes in clever, {{badass}} ways, which only serves to make the two times they're genuinely challenged all the more stark.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]* ComicBook/{{Superman}}, and the Creator/AlanMoore-created ComicBook/TomStrong, count as this. There's no question they'll win, it's just how long it'll take to get them there--and what interesting moral questions the victory will raise.* Superhero comics usually make the inevitability of the hero's victory interesting by shifting tension away from winning or losing, and focusing on other problems. Creator/{{DC|Comics}} heroes tend to get a lot of suspense and drama out of whether or not they will manage to save ''everyone'' in the villain's path (they often don't succeed, which leads to angst), while Creator/{{Marvel|Comics}} heroes often have personal beefs with their villains and the drama stems more from their relationship with the villain and the emotional issues that get brought up during the fight.* ComicBook/TheMetabarons are all this, starting with Aghnar. They are able to win against impossible odds, especially when Aghora slaughters an entire universe in a mirror dimension. The dramatic tension of the series comes largely from the horrible tragedy that continuously befalls the Metabaron clan.* ComicBook/TheSpectre is a perfect example of this trope. Being one of the most powerful beings in the DC Universe (he's essentially the God of Revenge) there's not really anything that can threaten him. Sometimes his comics have him pass judgment on morally ambiguous situations and draw suspense from the question of what his final decision will be, and there are other times when he gets de-powered so he can succumb to TheWorfEffect. For the most part, though, The Spectre comics are all about watching the title character brutally dispatch horrible people.* The main appeal of ''Stardust the Super Wizard,'' a [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] character with [[SuperpowerLottery more powers than Superman,]] who spends most of his time taking down petty criminal organizations and terrorist factions, none of which can even visibly slow him down. The appeal of the comic (aside from [[SoBadItsGood Fletcher Hanks's bizarre artwork]]) is seeing the... creative ways that Stardust vanquishes his hopelessly-outgunned foes. In one famous example, a MadScientist tried to take over America with an oxygen-destroying ray. After destroying the ray and completely reversing its effects in the space of two panels, Stardust proceeded to grab the man, [[BodyHorror turn him into a disembodied head]], fly into space, and throw him into the waiting arms of a giant 'headhunter' monster, which [[NightmareFuel absorbs the scientist into its body as he begs for mercy.]][[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Fiction]]* The [=newChaos=] forces from ''FanFic/TheOpenDoor''. As explained by a character, due to the still-rebuilding population on their native universe's Earth, every loss will be felt more severely compared to hostile factions that [[WeHaveReserves have reserves]], forcing them to go the BiggerStick route, combined with a DangerouslyGenreSavvy avoiding of universes that have even bigger "sticks". So this is a form of justifying this trope.* Inverted in ''Fanfic/TheTSABActurusWar''. The author has stated that the TSAB will win and the point of the story is the VillainousValour of the DRA as it tries to make the Bureau bleed as badly as possible for that victory.* In the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''[=/=]''Series/{{Smallville}}'' crossover ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4299118/1/Stakes_and_Fenceposts Stakes and Fenceposts]]'', even armed with magic, the Buffyverse villains are simply no match for Clark Kent, and he pretty much just destroys them all as a total {{Badass}}.* The Agents in [[FanFic/AkatsukiKittenPhoenixCorporationOverhaul Akatsuki Kitten: Phoenix Corporation Overhaul]]. They were designed with the idea of {{God Mode Sue}}s in mind, and despite rarely shown fighting, are strong enough to knock all of Akatsuki off their feet. The fun parts come at times like an omake that involved an agent going to the Literature/HarryPotter dimension, and killing a few Death Eaters by making their blood explode, as well as the "[[ThoseWackyNazis Dancing]] [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Hitler]]" incident. Despite the author's expectations (and occasionally, it's hinted, her hopes) that the characters would be controversial and hated, the characters come across as individual and amusing enough that they're actually fairly popular among the readers.* Though the fic does make efforts to avoid making him too invincible, Ben in ''Fanfic/FateStayNightUltimateMaster'' has moments of this. The most famous example being when he [[spoiler:[[CurbStompBattle literally quashes]] [[TheJuggernaut Berserker]] as [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever Way Big]]]], which turns into such a CrowningMomentOfFunny and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome Awesome]] at the same time that it doesn't really bother you. * The ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'' fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9605098/1/To-Ascend To Ascend]]'', where Touma Kamijou starts the original series at his maximum potential, allowing him to curb-stomp anyone and solve almost any problem without breaking a sweat. The fans love it.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film]]* Film/JamesBond, sometimes.* ''Film/IpMan''. Until the final fight nothing gives him trouble, and even the final villain isn't too big a problem. Not so much in the sequel, where one character fights him to a clear draw, and another manages to keep him on the ropes and even knock him down once.* Cleric John Preston from ''Film/{{Equilibrium}}''.* ''Film/TheExpendables''. Not so much in the sequel either.* ''Film/{{Commando}}'': [[Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger John Matrix]]. He shoves cars, [[OneManArmy defeats an entire army]], successfully brawls with dozens of police officers at the same time and [[MadeOfExplodium blows lots of shit up]]. In a bid to give the movie a WorthyOpponent (and hang a lampshade), Bennett even says that either he or Matrix could single-handedly take out that army.* ''Film/TheBourneSeries'': Jason Bourne. The thrill of those movies isn't from whether or not he'll succeed, but ''how''. Case in point, any action hero can fight off a surprise attacker, but only Jason Bourne can do it with [[ImprovisedWeapon a pencil]].* In ''Film/{{Thor}}'', the title character had to BroughtDownToNormal to be given a fair fight. While he has his powers, he pretty casually decimates an army of Frost Giants, shoves the Destroyer's energy blast back in its face without taking a hit, and while Loki does initially begin the fight by kicking him around, it's because Thor refuses to fight until Loki starts threatening Jane Foster. At which point, Thor tackles him through a wall and lays his hammer on his chest. The point of that first movie was to show a god discovering humanity.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]* Literature/CiaphasCain ('''HERO OF THE IMPERIUM'''). Since the series is presented as his heavily-edited memoirs, there is no question as to whether or not he'll survive, [[CosmicPlaything but rather just how much more the universe can throw at him]]. Interestingly, he's an InvincibleHero from the perspective of everyone InUniverse, only the reader (and his lover/boss Inquisitor Vail) know just how scared he is.* This is pretty much what makes Literature/ArtemisFowl so enjoyable. The main character should be, by any standard, a [[MaryTzu Marty Tzu]], but it's so much fun to see him pull out his schemes that it won't bother you.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]* ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' and its counterpart ''Franchise/PowerRangers''. It's never a question what will happen in battle, but how impressive the [[HumongousMecha megazord]] will be and how big of an [[StuffBlowingUp explosion]] will follow.* ''Series/{{Columbo}}'': The title character is one. Once you know what the show is like, you know he's got the criminal anyway. The fun is watching him nail the bad guys bit by bit.* There is never any doubt that Shawn Spencer of ''Series/{{Psych}}'' will get the bad guy. But it sure is fun to watch him go.* ''Series/BurnNotice'': The same applies to Michael Westen. Oh, yeah. He's gonna get the guy. But the appeal is in watching him and his buddies pull it off.* ''Series/{{Monk}}'' may sometimes doubt his own ability to solve the case, but we never do. The interest lies in watching him solve the cleverest crimes on the basis of what seem to be [[EurekaMoment the thinnest inspirations]], and on anticipating the moment when he'll finally [[TheSummation explain everything]] and catch the killer (who is almost always a [[{{Jerkass}} horribly smug jackass]]) red-handed. [[note]]This only applies to solving cases. Practically everything else is a huge challenge for him. The fun doesn't just come from watching him do what he's ''good'' at.[[/note]]* ''Series/TheAvengers'': John Steed and Emma Peel never lose. They're not even challenged very frequently by the diabolical masterminds who oppose them. But that doesn't matter -- what matters is that they both look ''incredibly cool'' while they're doing...well, ''anything''.* This is most of the appeal of watching ''Series/MacGyver''. If the title character's in a strait jacket and handcuffs while poachers are about to release some kind of nerve gas into the air supply of a zoo, the question is never, "is he going to fail?" Rather, it's "[[MacGyvering How's he going to use a paper clip, his pants, four Tic-Tacs,]] [[CrazyAwesome a blender that doesn't work,]] [[OverlyLongGag a teaspoon's worth of peanut butter, a blender that does work, and a handful of wet dirt]] to jimmy himself loose, disable the pumps, and beat the bad guys before time runs out?"* The original ''Series/MissionImpossible'' was a team of Showy Invincible Heroes. Sure, there might be a hiccup or two along the way, but you know the M.I. team will always achieve their goals. The ''real'' fun is in seeing how the simultaneous parallel plots ingeniously come together in the final act to deliver the bad guys' comeuppance.* [[Series/DoctorWho The Doctor]] rarely loses, and even when he does, odds are he'll repay the favor later.** Of course, given the sort of things his enemies tend to get up to, the ripple effect, if not the plan itself, would probably change history such that the universe would end (or [[spoiler:never have existed]] as of the Season 5 finale).** While he rarely loses and his companions rarely die, some seasons ''do'' leave the survival of any and all people introduced in the current episode up for grabs. In other seasons, not so much. It's DependingOnTheWriter.* Ken Hayakawa from ''Series/KaiketsuZubat''. He is '[[TheAce #1 in Japan' at everything]], including [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter the special skill of the villain he's presently fighting]]. It isn't a matter of ''how'' he'll when, it's all about how ''freaking awesome'' he's going to look doing it.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]* This was pretty much the entire point of Wrestling/{{Goldberg}}'s character, especially in his Wrestling/{{WCW}} run. He built up a win streak of almost 200 wins straight, and the entire appeal of that streak was in seeing who he could beat next and how quickly he could do it.* Wrestling/JohnCena tends to float into this territory sometimes; often times it's just the InvincibleHero, but when he DOES start selling properly (usually in an I Quit or Last Man Standing match) and goes into full-on {{Determinator}} mode, it can be downright scary how much legitimate punishment he can absorb before finally getting the upper hand back and even the smarks start wanting to watch him get back up. Easy enough to say it's all part of the script, but then you remember he usually returns from a legitimate injury in between a third and a quarter of the time he logically should...[[/folder]]

[[folder:Radio]]* OlderThanTelevision: ''Franchise/TheLoneRanger'', as well as any superhero radio adaptations.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]* ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'' is the king of this trope in tabletop gaming, where the heroes are expected to be very showy (up to and including getting bonus dice on their actions if they're showy enough when they do them), and largely invincible. The trope does not hold with respect to major antagonists. Many of them outclass player characters as much as the latter outclass common {{Mooks}}.* The Smallville RPG takes this to an interesting place by making all [=PCs=], and even most [=NPCs=], impossible to kill (well, unless the Player chooses to have them die for dramatic reasons) so that all the drama is carried by character interactions, and the interest by how they go about building and destroying beliefs and relationships.* It may be worth noting that if a game simply makes player characters hard or impossible to kill (whether intrinsically so through its rules or by providing explicit options to "cheat death"), that's actually not in and of itself this trope or [[InvincibleHero its cousin]] already. It takes more than mere immortality to make a character actually ''invincible''...simply because they can always easily stay alive, even in perfect health, and ''still lose'' in the end. (This actually does seem to be a concept that some gamers and even game ''designers'' have trouble wrapping their heads around -- the "if you can't die, there's no challenge!" meme is an old and pretty entrenched one.)[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]* Many Tool-Assisted {{Speed Run}}s. If a player dies in one, it was certainly just to save time.* The battles in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' (and maybe other installments in the series as well) can be like this. Most of them are easy, but oh so flashy if you want that. The final battle against "Safer Sephiroth" is an {{inver|tedTrope}}sion in that the villain is going to lose for sure, almost certainly on your first try, but he's so showy he still manages to come across as godlike. The more-final duel between Cloud and Sephiroth is also an example, as it is unloseable but you're probably going to win it with [[LimitBreak Omnislash]], which you may not have even seen before that. And yes, it is showy.* Dante of ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' is practically the personification of this... [[CutscenePowerToTheMax in the cutscenes anyways]]. Ingame, you can make the cutscenes look ''tame'' by comparison.* [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]] and [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Link]] are Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s main examples of this trope.* Master Chief of ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' fame seems to fit this trope well. Though inverted with the protagonist of ''VideoGame/HaloReach'': the fall of reach [[DoomedByCanon is guaranteed]]; the fun is in seeing how awesomely you lose.* Modern era ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' games like ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'', ''VideoGame/SonicColors'', and ''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'' turn Sonic into this, seeing as how much of the fun comes from running through the levels almost nonstop and looking awesome doing so. ''VideoGame/SonicLostWorld'' deconstructs a lot of this in the cutscenes as it shows what happens when Sonic pulls this trope without thinking.* Asura from ''VideoGame/AsurasWrath'' is very much this when it comes to most enemy mooks. Subverted in some fights with the 7 Deities, where at first he seems to lose, but as his anger builds, he eventually goes into this territory. A number of plot-mandated defeats occur at times, but are followed by, literally, climbing out of the afterlife and starting a new fight with the next Deity, reinforcing this trope.* Kerrigan in ''VideoGame/StarCraftIIHeartOfTheSwarm'' already is a {{Magnificent B|astard}}itch leading a HordeOfAlienLocusts, and becomes a full-blown GameBreaker and {{Physical God}}dess who literally [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu kills and consumes Eldritch Abominations for snack]] by the second half of the game. Very little missions have her in an actual position of inferiority, but it's so much fun to destroy entire armies with her that you most likely won't complain.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]* Leo "the Legendary Man" Shishigami in ''VisualNovel/RoseGunsDays''. When he is around, the question is never "can he win?" but "what kind of ridiculously awesome stunt will he pull off to win?" This is almost taken to ComicallyInvincibleHero at some points. This is probably the reason he is PutOnABus for more than half of the series. Even some of the toughest characters are less than enthused at the idea of having him as an enemy.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]* Parodied, or something, by Andrew Smith of ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'', who has the power to "create order," essentially a ridiculously overpowered version of WindsOfDestinyChange. He can cause absurdly improbable {{Contrived Coincidence}}s (if he throws a deck of cards in the air, they will land in one lined-up stack, ''in order''), be CrazyPrepared completely by accident, make a desired MacGuffin inexplicably appear at his feet, stabilize otherwise uncontrollably random things like Parley's teleporting ability, and who knows what else. He could probably resolve the whole plot in one chapter with dozens of invoked {{Deus Ex Machina}}s, so his power is mostly PlayedForLaughs instead (Parley {{lampshade|Hanging}}s the fact that his power "makes everything boring").[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Originals]]* ''Literature/TheSalvationWar'' trilogy is explicitly about Humanity (as in, the people of Earth starting from January 2008) versus both Heaven and Hell, and it becomes quite obvious before long[[note]]From [[http://bbs.stardestroyer.net/viewtopic.php?t=117613 the thread]] that eventually led to the trilogy, even.[[/note]] who's winning... but the ride is full of ''awesome'', win and even heroic tragedy in a setting that at times seems to laugh at the idea thereof... well, up until Book 3: ''Lords of War'', at which point it's "the morning after." What, you thought [[spoiler:Humanity becoming the masters of Heaven, Hell, and Earth]] would be consequence-free?* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' has Tex devolving into this in the later seasons. She was always the best of the characters but her skills have been hyped to the level where there is not one single competent threat she can face. Combined with her Jerkass personality it's hard to see why the series creators want the audience to be rooting for her. Subverted in that [[spoiler:she ultimately always loses and/or dies in the end. The memory she's based upon is of Alison losing and dying, so it's hardcoded into the original Tex A.I. and Epsilon Tex to always fail in the end.]][[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]* WesternAnimation/BugsBunny. Bar a few exceptions, he always outwits his foes, and it is always hilarious. Also the Road Runner. And WesternAnimation/SpeedyGonzales. And just about any other ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' hero you can think of. It's a staple of their style.* The eponymous robot of ''WesternAnimation/MegasXLR'' and its pilot, Coop, in the grand tradition of the SuperRobotGenre it lovingly parodies. * WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}} likes doing this from time to time. He becomes one more and more as the franchise goes on. At the beginning of the show, he already had 10 alien forms, each one with its own powers. Currently, he has reach over 70 different forms, and literally as many different ways he can kick his enemies' asses.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Life]]* The appeal of the Harlem Globetrotters. They win every time with AwesomeButImpractical moves. The only time they were even challenged was playing against an army of robots on ''Series/GilligansIsland'' (long story.) The Globetrotters went out and played some real games in their history, and [[TeamRocketWins a few times they lost to the Washington Generals]] or their other foils due to on-court screw-ups.[[/folder]]